President Donald Trump on Monday formally dismantled US sanctions against Syria, hoping to reintegrate the war-battered country into the global economy as Israel eyes ties with its new leadership.

Trump lifted most sanctions against Syria in May, responding to appeals from Saudi Arabia and Turkey after former Islamist guerrilla Ahmed al-Sharaa ended a half-century of rule by the Assad family.

In an executive order, Trump terminated the "national emergency" in place since 2004 that imposed far-reaching sanctions on Syria, affecting most state-run institutions including the central bank.

"These actions reflect the president's vision of fostering a new relationship between the United States and a Syria that is stable, unified and at peace with itself and its neighbors," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement.

Rubio said he would start the potentially lengthy process of examining whether to delist Syria as a state........

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